Teachers who had borrowed money from the Funeral Service Welfare Fund for Teachers and Education Personnel’s loan scheme and who are obliged to reach debt compromises with the Government Savings Bank (GSB), should speedily proceed to do so, an adviser to the education minister said on Sunday.

Citing the GSB’s latest report, General Kosol Prathumchat said 4,000 “critical” debtors had already reached debt-composition agreements with the bank, while another 16,000 debtors who were about to be sued by the bank had also entered the debt-negotiation process.

Kosol said that Education Minister Teerakiat Jareonsettasin had handed down a policy that teachers wishing to receive Funeral Service Welfare Fund loans had the right to choose from seven insurance companies when buying a policy to secure a loan, and should not be forced to get coverage with any particular insurer.

However, roughly 13,000 debtors who borrowed from the fund nine years ago were required to get new insurance policies by next month, but six of the seven companies were not yet ready to issue such policies, he explained.

As a result, the Office of the Welfare Promotion Commission for Teachers and Education Personnel (OTEP) had asked Dhipaya Insurance to renew these teachers’ policies for another year before they could switch to one of the other six insurers next year if they wished to do so, he said.

The ministerial adviser added that he had also recently urged OTEP to investigate corruption regarding loan schemes for teachers and school directors, and to provide welfare and aid to its embattled teacher members, whether active or retired.